Naperville, Elmhurst Lead West Suburbs in 2013 DUI Arrests

According to an annual survey, four western suburbs landed in the top ten Illinois municipalities in DUI arrests for 2013.

Naperville led the suburbs logging 553 DUI arrests in 2013, edged out of the number one spot by Rockford (556). Naperville’s arrest rate for drunken drivers dropped by 4.0 percent, compared to the 576 arrests from the year before.

The data comes from the Alliance Against Intoxicated Motorists’ annual Illinois DUI arrest survey. AAIM has conducted the survey since 1990 to determine how many DUI arrests are made by law enforcement agencies across the state, and to recognize the most productive departments and police officers in the fight against drunk driving.

Carol Stream (392) and Elmhurst (300) held the number five and six spots on the list, with Aurora (256) ranking tenth in statewide DUI arrests in 2013.

Nearly 700 police agencies were surveyed, with 84-percent responding. Illinois police departments that landed in the top ten of DUI arrests include:

1. Rockford - 556

2. Naperville - 553

3. Decatur - 485

4. Springfield - 410

5. Carol Stream - 392

6. Elmhurst - 300

7. Normal - 279

8. Rock Island - 274

9. Oak Lawn - 262

10. Aurora - 256

Elsewhere in the western suburbs, neighboring Lombard (229) and Wheaton (208) ranked in the top 25 of DUI arrests, falling in the number 14 and 22 spots, respectively.

The highest DUI arrest rate in the state among departments making at least 200 arrests was Carol Stream which had 6.43 arrests per sworn officer. The second highest rate of 6.30 was in Loves Park. The citizen activist group measures arrests per officer that can be used to compare smaller departments emphasis on DUI enforcement.

AAIM executive director Rita Kreslin stated that of all the people who died in Illinois motor vehicle crashes, 35-percent lost their lives in crashes involving a drunk driver.

“That is more than 350 deaths each year,” Kreslin said in a news release. “Departments that make more DUI arrests and who have effective DUI enforcement in their communities are saving lives by preventing impaired driving crashes and crash fatalities.”

West suburban law enforcement agencies in the Patch network that responded to the 2013 survey were ranked as followed:

#26 - Downers Grove - 182

#38 - St. Charles - 144

#67 - Geneva - 86

#69 - Oak Park - 83

#88 - Batavia - 60

#90 - Hinsdale - 58

#91 - Woodridge - 57

#92 - Darien - 56

#101 - Burr Ridge - 47

#104 - Yorkville - 44

#124 - Western Springs - 24

#132 - Clarendon Hills - 16

#137 - LaGrange - 11

#141 - LaGrange Park - 7

Also, Chicago’s DUI arrest rate decreased by 10.5 percent in 2013 (3,395) compared to 2012 (3,795). Illinois State Police upped its arrests by 28.8 percent in 2013 (9,302) compared to 2012 (7,220).

The sheriff’s department reporting the most DUI arrests was Lake County (348), followed by Cook (306), Winnebago (295), Will (262) and DuPage (245), rounding out the top five.

AAIM is an Illinois-only citizen activist group founded in 1982 by victims of drunk driving. The group promotes prevention, victim advocacy and legislation for tougher drunk driving laws and is a recognized expert in this area.

AAIM’s annual DUI arrest survey is funded by a grant from theIllinois Department of Transportation.

Read the complete 2013 Illinois DUI arrest survey results.

See the top 2013 Illinois departments with 200+ DUI arrests.